Sue's bootcamp, part 1

Last Tuesday, I went for a short 5k run, I still had this annoying cold and didn’t feel all that well. When I came back, my Mom wanted me to show her some of our bootcamp exercises, since I have been talking about it non-stop. We grabbed the bikes and cycled to the park. I brought all my equipment with me – a medicine ball, a resistance band, a mat, cones, a jump-rope – everything. I found a great location in the park that was ideal for our “beginner bootcamp”. It was on a hill overlooking the lake, it had a couple of stairs, benches, poles, a curb and a stone wall (ideal for step-ups and tricep dips). My Mom had no idea what she was putting herself into and neither had I. Half of the time we had to stop exercising because we had to laugh so hard… My Mom's final conclusion was that it looks so easy when I demonstrate but it is really difficult when she actually has to do it… but overall, we got a good workout in. Since my Mom has never done such kind of workout, I also wanted to be gentle and also pay attention to her form which is probably more important than a high number of repetitions in the first class. I had a lot of fun and I think Mom did, too – she was quite sore the next day but she asked for a second workout, so I think she liked it.

The next day, my cold was getting worse (probably because I hate to rest…) but I had promised my Mom to test a new trail with her. It is a 10.5k “Nordic Walking” trail. Nordic Walking is really popular in Germany, I said I would join her on the trail but without all the Nordic walking equipment. We were only 1k into the trail when it was closed. There were signs saying “Trespassing, danger of life! Falling trees/logging.” I said “Mom, we can’t go there!” but my Mom was like “Why? I don’t hear a saw…let’s go!” and off she went. Indeed, there were no people working but the trail was completely covered with fallen trees, it was quite an adventure to climb over all those trees…and I think I got bitten by at least 5 mosquitos. After 30 minutes, we thankfully got on a “regular” trail again. I have never done Nordic Walking before, but somehow it is not my thing… it is faster than walking but slower than running, I always felt like I want to start running… but it was nice to chat and hang out with my Mom and Nuernberg’s countryside is really beautiful!

A new visa and a new hair cut!

I am still in Germany enjoying the time with my family! I did a lot less traveling than expected because I got a really bad cold. For some reason, I am never sick in San Francisco but I ALWAYS catch a cold or a virus when I see my nephew and my niece. They are both in pre-school, and I guess my immune system is not used to that kind of stress…In addition with a jet lag it’s almost certain that I get sick 72h after seeing my family…the good news is that I will live and it is worth it.

I had an appointment at the US Embassy last Monday to interview for my H1B-visa. I got an appointment at 8.00 am, which is the earliest available. Last time I had an appointment at noon and I had to wait 3h, this time I thought I am smart and avoid a long wait. I had to get up at 4.30 am to drive to Munich. I got trapped in a traffic jam on the Autobahn and arrived at the Embassy at 7.50 am… My plan to get coffee and breakfast before my appointment had to be changed then… They have security controls at the Embassy worse than at the airport. They even took my car keys away from me because no electronic items are allowed…come on, it’s a car key…! Oh well. While I was waiting in line outside the building, I met an old friend of mine, Geli, who is now working in Washington D.C.! We couldn't believe that we both came back from the States at the same time to go to the Embassy, what a coincidence. It was so good to see her and it made the long wait so much more fun. I haven't seen her in 3 years so we had a lot to catch up. The security check took almost 25 minutes and when I was finally in the building, there were already 12 people waiting… I gave them all my paperwork, my fingerprints and was told to wait for the interview…10 minutes later, they told us that the computer system was down and no work could be done at this point, but they are trying to fix it asap…30 minutes later, they offered people to reschedule appointments for the next day because they couldn’t solve the problem. For me, there was no doubt that I would wait, no matter how long it would take because I didn’t want to get up at 4.30 am the next day again and drive 130 miles to Munich… At 10.30 am, I finally had my interview – it took less than 1 minute.

“So, what kind of research do you do?”
“Parkinson’s Disease”.
“Well, that seems quite important, right?”
“Right.”
"And you have worked there as a Postdoc?"
"Yes, the last 3 years."
“Ok then, you’ll get your new visa. Have a nice day and safe travels to the US!”

I GOT MY NEW VISA, it was worth the wait! I am soooo happy!!! I spent the rest of the day in Munich, I had such a good time. I love Munich, I really think it is the most beautiful city in Germany. Unfortunately, I couldn’t bring my camera (no electronics allowed at the US embassy), so I have no pictures from Munich to post. But I will be back next weekend and hopefully make some nice pictures then. I finished my visit to Munich with a visit at my favorite hair stylist – now my hair is much shorter than I actually wanted it, but it's ok. Although, now that my long hair is gone, I think it looked really good on me...Hmpf.

A Sunday packed with Franconian traditions

I woke up this morning at 7 am and decided to go for a longer run today. Yesterday I ran my favorite loop which is approximately 3.5 miles on tempo, today I wanted to run a slower 8.5 mile loop. It was beautiful this morning but it was freezing cold! I checked the temperature before my run, it was only 1 degree Celsius (~35F)! I didn’t even bring the right running gear for such low temperatures but I layered up as good as possible and started running. I ran towards a part of Nürnberg that is called “Kraftshof”, it’s in Nürnberg’s countryside with many farmers,fields and lots of forest, it is really beautiful and very traditional. I ran half of the distance on beautiful trails through the woods (my Dad was really worried about me running so early all by myself…Dad!) and the second half of my run was passing fields and Nürnberg airport. I only met 5 people during my run, it was so quiet and relaxing. Back home, Mum was already waiting with breakfast and coffee, it was a perfect start in the day!

Later, my parents cooked a traditional German dish for lunch: Sauerbraten! It was soooo delicious but also quite filling. My parents decided to rest a little on the couch, I grabbed my Dad’s bike to go for a short 10 mile-loop (I had to remove spider webs first...). That was a really good decision! I biked to a little place called “Neunhof” and then passed “Kraftshof” on my way back home.
When I approached Kraftshof, there were so many people – first I thought it’s a wedding, but as I kept on biking, I approached a police car closing off the roads and more and more people. I asked them what was going on and they said it’s the “Kraftshofer Kärwa-Umzug” which is something like a pageant, an opening ceremony for a country fair.

So I got off my bike and watched the whole thing – it was so much fun! Bavarian marching bands, horses, beer, happy people – I was so lucky to run into this event by accident! I love Bavarian traditions, I love Germany and I am enjoying every minute of my stay!

How to blend with the French

Last night, I had a blast! I had a fun evening and I made 5 new (French) friends. There have been quite a few French men talking to me the last 2 days but honestly, those were not the kind of men that I wanted to talk to. Paris has many really handsome men to offer, but they are unfortunately not the ones that invited me for coffee ;-) But anyway, I didn’t come to Paris to meet men but to inhale some European flair and lifestyle, I just needed a little “taste of Europe”. Last night, I wasn’t hungry at all (because I had this huge chocolate pastry in the afternoon), but I decided to go out for dinner nonetheless to watch people and mingle with the French. I passed so many restaurants but couldn’t decide where to eat. Some of them had a great menu but where completely empty and others were packed but I didn’t like the food or the crowd was too touristy. It also seems like the people in Paris don’t have dinner around 7 pm unless they are tourists. I couldn’t find a place I liked so I was about to walk back to my room (I wasn’t hungry anyway…). I passed a little Pizzeria on Rue Damrémont where the waiter was just coming back carrying 6 baguettes. He smiled and said “Voulez-vous une baguette, Mademoiselle?” I looked inside the restaurant and there was only one couple in there but he seemed friendly so I decided to stay for dinner. A very good decision! I had a glass of red wine and a “Pizza Quattro staggioni”, the food was really good. ). I was sitting at the community table (that seats 7) and I was almost finished with my dinner when a group of 7 French guys came in the restaurant. Since they could only fit at that one table where I was, the waiter asked me if I’d be ok switching tables so that they could all fit – of course that was no problem at all. I decided to have one more glass of wine as the place just started to fill up and as I enjoyed watching the people. There were only locals there except one German couple, they were really funny. He was annoyed because he couldn’t understand the menu (although I have to say that “Pizza Margarita, Fungi, Regina and 4 Staggioni” are named exactly the same in Germany, too…) and she tried to calm him down trying to translate (“Aber Schatzi du magst doch Mozzarella und Tomaten, oder? Das wäre dann die Pizza Margarita”…). It was pretty entertaining (and no, “vino rosso” is NOT a dry white wine…!). 5 minutes later, another group of 5 came in and the waiter asked if they could join my table (since that was the only space left for 5. I wanted to pay anyway and make room for them but before I could even look, they had ordered wine and refilled my glass. They turned out to be a really nice group – three men, two women, all about my age. We talked all evening (mostly English and a little bit of French) and by the end of dinner, we had decided to all meet in Vegas for Christmas and in Munich for the Oktoberfest next year…they were so friendly and so much fun, I had a great evening. We exchanged email addresses and business cards, I hope to stay in touch, they made my Paris-experience a lot more valuable. I am glad I went out last night!

Today, believe it or not, I have copied an almost perfect “French look”! Ha! I think I have figured out what it takes. So here is my secret advice… First of all, you need a “do-not-dare-to-talk-to-me-look”. Secondly, look busy, e.g. by carrying a book or by talking on the phone (although this is not recommended if you have an iphone 4G because it is a primary target for thieves…). Thirdly, dress a little bit funky and even if your clothes don’t match just pretend that you are the hottest person on this planet. Wear heels. Apply a tiny bit of rouge. And most importantly: have attitude! For a "perfect" French look it seems like you have to smoke a cigarette, I skipped that one. And I didn’t wash my hair today but again it doesn’t matter as long as you wear it with confidence... Even though I spent most of my day in Montmartre which is a very touristy area of Paris, many people asked me for directions thinking I was local, talked French to me in the shops or asked me to participate in surveys on the street (which were meant to target the French population). Also the people in the restaurants spoke French to me today, I was very happy.

I am also happy to report that France seems to be “scarf-country”! Everyone who knows me knows how much I love scarves! I saw so many beautiful scarves but they were all around $100, quite expensive…I only bought one but I saw at least 5 that I wanted to have… I had lunch before I went to the airport, I ordered a salad but I had no idea what I was getting myself into (as I couldn't understand half of the ingredients listed...). Who said a salad has to be healthy..? But for sure it was VERY delicious!

I had a fantastic time in Paris, it was a great treat. Now I am sitting at Charles-de-Gaulle-airport waiting for my connection to Nürnberg. I am really looking forward to see my family in a couple of hours. Oh and one more thing: if you love your car, don't bring it to Paris..I would definitely get a heart attack! Driving isn't that bad but parking is crazy (see picture!). I haven't seen a single car that had no dings or scratches...Ok, I am still "very German" in that respect, I know, but we love our cars :) Au révoir Paris, servus Nürnberg!

Paris, deuxième jour

This is the only full day that I can spend in Paris, so I wanted to see as much as possible. Another goal was to blend better with the French women (who really look very stylish and elegant), so I dressed in black pants and a really nice shirt. Unfortunately, my “French look” puffed away in one second as I put my running shoes on… I tried my black boots instead but there was no way that I could walk long distances in them. In the end, I decided against the "French look" in favor for comfortable shoes - I am glad I was wearing my sneakers because I walked 7h today! I had such a fantastic day!

I started heading to the “Champs de Mars” and the Eiffel Tower. I didn’t really want to go up the Eiffel Tower because I have done it 13 years ago and there was a long line as well. But then I saw an empty register…why? Because they sold tickets for the staircase…I had to think about the Lyon Street stairs and of course I saw the challenge right away…I bought a ticket (still paid 4.50 Euro) and started climbing stairs (I only met 2 people on my way up…). According to the security guy, it is approximately 700 stairs each way. I am not quite sure it didn’t seem to be that many but I was definitely sweating by the time I reached the second platform (you can’t walk all the way to the top, you can only walk to the second platform).

Later, I walked to the Arc de Triomphe and strolled down the Champs Élysées all the way to “les Jardins Tuileries” and to the Louvre. My last stop was Notre Dame and by then I was really exhausted from all the walking. Oh well, not exhausted enough for a short stop in one of my favorite clothing stores, “Kookaï”. I bought two sweaters and a scarf, I have no idea how I will squeeze it in my luggage (which is already exploding), but it has to get in there somehow.

It was such a beautiful day and I have seen so many beautiful streets, gardens and buildings. I always tried to speak French in shops, Cafes or Restaurants but people always replied in English. I guess my French isn’t that good anymore :( This morning, I ordered a “café au lait” in a little café (it said “café crème” on the receipt…I always thought “café au lait” is a French thing…?). The waitress asked me in French if I wanted to eat something and I asked for the menu (in French…) and she brought me a cocktail menu. I have no idea what she was thinking but she just looked at me and said “Croissant?" Hahaha, I guess that’s what all tourists order when they have no clue. But I didn’t give up and said “Non, merci, j’amerais bien avoir un pain au chocolat s’il vous plaît.” Ha! And I got my chocolate croissant and my coffee and I was happy :) Note that in this picture posted, I am having a “café grande” – just to put things in perspective with American portion sizes....

When I walked to the Eiffel Tower, a man came my way, he picked up something from the floor shortly before I passed him and it happened to be a golden ring (585 gold) that someone must have lost on the street. He said “Mon dieu, c’est d’or!”, he tried it on but it was way too small for his fingers, then he looked at me and wanted to give it to me. I didn’t take it, I am not sure why I am so suspicious but I thought “maybe he didn’t even find it but already had it and it’s just a scam…” because clearly, someone in sneakers walking towards the Eiffel tower is a tourist and I felt like an easy target as I was all by myself. And secondly I thought that even if he really just found it, he has to bring it to the lost & found office because someone will miss the ring, right? Anyway, I rejected the gift, I guess that was the right thing to do. He said “Well, this could have been your lucky day, now it’s mine.” That’s ok.

I really love the flair and the lifestyle of Paris. As much as I enjoyed my stay in Paris, it would have been twice as much fun with company, I have to admit. I guess “Mr. Croissant” was my best friend the last two days :) I am really looking forward to seeing my family in Germany tomorrow evening, I had enough “me-time”. But not before I eat a few more pastries and bread, they are really to die for!

"L'americaine" en France

Paris, I am on my way! I boarded my plane to Paris Tuesday afternoon. Of course I went to Basic Training in the morning and when I got there, Michael said “And because Sue will be gone for such a long time, I thought we do a special workout today…the beach!” Awesome…beach workouts are usually the hardest…and to make me remember it even longer, we had to run to the beach carrying a 10 lbs medicine ball. Everyone was like “Thanks, Sue…!” but hey, it wasn’t my idea! I can’t believe that I will be without Basic Training for the next 2.5 weeks, that makes me really sad. When the class was over, I got so many hugs, made me very happy. I will miss you guys!

At SFO, I had to wait for more than 1h to check my luggage and when I finally got to security, they picked me to go through the “body scan”. Great! So I am standing in this glass thing, raising my arms, it scans, then he calls his co-worker, they scan again, then they have a really ridiculous smile on their face…it was really awkward. As this little glass chamber opens again he said “You are good.” Aha, thanks. I am sure he meant “good to go”… That was a very bizarre experience. I always thought I don’t mind the body scan but I think I have changed my mind. I flew Air France for the first time. Since this blog is also about food, I highly recommend bringing your own food when flying Air France economy…it was worse than expected. Well, but I have to say I usually hate it when people complain about food on the plane because everyone knows that it is not good in general – after all it’s transportation, not a restaurant… I slept at least 6h on the plane (thanks, beach workout!) and didn’t feel too tired when I arrived in France.

It took me almost 2h to get my luggage and finally get to the bed & breakfast that I have booked. It was in Montmartre and it was a really nice place and area. Also, it was the only room I could afford in Paris, it is ridiculous how much hotels charge in Paris for 1 night ($300-400 on average for 2 or 3 stars). Since it was only 2 pm by the time I checked in, I decided to walk to Sacre Coeur and to the Cimitière de Montmarte. On this cemetery, there are many famous artists burried; poets, writers and composers, like Emile Zola and Jaques Offenbach. I realized that my style was completely inappropriate for Paris, I felt a little bit stupid. People asked me if I am American before I even started talking…! Is that what happened to me over the past 3.5 years? Don’t get me wrong, I love California and there is nothing wrong with looking American, but I always thought I haven’t changed that much really. And I didn’t even wear my “Marina-sweat pants outfit”… :) Two french guys passing me on the street invited me to have coffee with them, a third guy invited me to “Moulin Rouge”… Clearly, I was showing too much cleavage - at least compared to all those elegant French women! I guess my boot cut-hippy jeans with holes in it and the sunglasses in my hair didn’t help either, but for my excuse, I just came off a 12h flight and I wasn’t in the mood to make an effort to look stylish at that point, I was just tired. One guy started talking to me and told me how beautiful and elegant my American look was… that was so ridiculous considering how awesome the French women surrounding me were dressed. I felt really silly. In all those cases, I was very suspicious so I kept running…no coffee, no Moulin Rouge, no small talk. But the bottom line is, that if you want free coffee with a weirdo, you have to go to Paris and dress the “American way”… Sorry America for representing you as a German in France in such a bad way, I apologize.
I bought an amazing “pain aux raisins” and of course I also bought a baguette with ham and cheese on my way home. So simple but yet sooo tasty! Yumm! I fell asleep at 7 pm, I was really tired.

Relaxing in wine country and getting ready for Europe

After Alhaji’s workout last Wednesday, I was sore all Thursday and Friday…my upper body and my arms were in serious pain. I guess that’s what you call an efficient workout! I went to a Bar Method class on Friday and I could barely lift the 2 lbs weights…It was a painful experience. I didn’t go for my long run on Saturday because I desperately needed a rest. I have been working out so hard all week, it felt good to take a day off. I bought new running shoes though and now I can’t wait to take them out for a run! I also decided to take Sunday off, it’s been a long time that I didn’t work out for two days. I spent the day up in Sonoma in the Dry Creek Valley with my friends Amy and Jen. We visited two of my favorite wineries: Mounts and Mill Creek. We did two wine tastings, and all of their wines were soooo delicious! I had a hard time deciding what to buy. I ended up with a 2002 Merlot (which was amazing!!), a 2004 Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve and a 2007 Zinfandel. I can’t wait to open them but I will save them for a special occasion(because they weren’t exactly cheap…).



This morning I worked out with the 6 am Basic Training class. We first ran to the Marina pull up bars and did some pull ups and then headed to the warming hut. We did some exercises for the abs, sprinted up the stairs a couple of times, did hip dips and planks in between before we headed back to the Exploratorium (running on the beach). It was a beautiful morning! Back at the parking lot, I shadowed the 7 am class and assisted Sandra a little bit, it is so much fun working with people. There are so many inspiring personalities, it makes me want to work out harder and be in better shape so that I can (potentially) be a good instructor for them one day. I took them for an Indian run from the Warming hut to “Hopper’s hands” and I did a little bit of the warm up. I really enjoy getting more responsibility week by week. But there are definitely many things that I still need to learn! I really need to study my books now, my goal is to get certified within the next 3 months.

I am heading to Europe for the next three weeks to renew my visa and to visit my family. I will miss San Francisco, my friends and Basic Training a lot! I am so much in love with this city! I will bring my new running shoes and I will do a mini-bootcamp with my Mum in Germany (watch out Mum!), I want to come back in good shape and hopefully also a little bit faster. I will do some speed-training while I am in Europe and get some good long runs in. I am so excited to go but also a little sad to be gone for so long. I will miss my bootcamp classes a lot but I promise to work out hard!